mikedopp's questions

I assume this would be easy. However i cannot get powercli latest to mount a cd with an iso and boot from the ISO to install the OS(windows).

    $NewVMParams = @{
    'VMHost' = 'MyESX1'
    'Name' = 'TestMount_Auto'
    'Datastore' = 'VMFSLun01'
    'DiskGB' = 20
    'DiskStorageFormat' = 'Thin'
    'MemoryGB' = 4
    'GuestId' = 'windows8Server64Guest'
    'Version' = 'v10'
    'NumCpu' = 2
    'Notes' = 'Mike Dopp is breaking things'
}
$VM = New-VM @NewVMParams

$NewCDDriveParams = @{
    'VM' = $VM
    'IsoPath' = '[VMFSLUN01] ISO\SW_DVD5_Windows_Svr_Std_and_DataCtr_2012_R2_64Bit_English_Core_MLF_X19-05182.iso'
    'ErrorAction' = 'Stop'
    'StartConnected' = $True
}
New-CDDrive @NewCDDriveParams

Start-VM -VM $VM

Get-CDDrive -VM $VM | Set-CDDrive -connected 1

I typically get this error:

Set-CDDrive : 1/9/2018 11:19:53 AM      Set-CDDrive             The operation for the entity "TestMount_Auto" failed with the following message: "Connection control operation failed for disk 'ide0:0' (201).". Connection
control operation failed for disk 'ide0:0' (201).
At line:1 char:23
+ Get-CDDrive -VM $VM | Set-CDDrive -connected 1
+                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    + CategoryInfo          : NotSpecified: (:) [Set-CDDrive], GenericVmConfigFault
    + FullyQualifiedErrorId : Client20_TaskServiceImpl_CheckServerSideTaskUpdates_OperationFailed,VMware.VimAutomation.ViCore.Cmdlets.Commands.VirtualDevice.SetCDDrive

Ideas? i am stumped at the moment. thanks in advance.

***Update. Fixed the issue with Set-CDDrive -connected 1 there is no cdrom 1 it is 0 instead.

Also need to force the bios to wait 5 seconds to boot after repointing the ISo mount to the DataStore to get this to work. Still too manual.

***Update2 Found the issue.

$NewVMParams = @{
   'VMHost' = 'YourVMHost'
   'Name' = 'RickAstley'
   'Datastore' = 'YourDataStoreLUN01'
   'DiskGB' = 20
   'DiskStorageFormat' = 'Thin'
   'MemoryGB' = 4
   'GuestId' = 'windows8Server64Guest'
   'Version' = 'v10'
   'NumCpu' = 2
   'Notes' = 'Mike Dopp is breaking things'
    }
   $VM = New-VM @NewVMParams

   $NewCDDriveParams = @{
     'VM' = $VM
     'IsoPath' = '[YourDataStoreLUN01] ISO\TOODAMNBIG.iso'
     'StartConnected' = $true
     }
   New-CDDrive @NewCDDriveParams
    Sleep 10s
  Start-VM -VM $VM

found in the old code I was pointing to a long string name .ISO so I changed the name to: TOODAMNBIG.iso This allowed Vsphere time to find the name. So lower case .iso is what Vsphere wants passed to mount an iso to the cdrom. SOLVED!

I have bunch of Servers I need to push this patch through. Normally I would load up a WSUS or equivalent. However I would like to get this working in a DSC enviroment. So I am testing scripts to put into place for this workflow.

PowerShell complains it cannot find folder.

    Copy-Item $HostedRegFile -Destination $newfile "unauthorized"

Apparently I am not passing credentials correctly. I have tried everything I can think of using sessions to not using sessions..

    $servers = Get-Content "d:\Powershell\Servers.txt" 
    $Session = New-PSSession -computername $servers -credential $MyCredential

    $HostedRegFile = "\\Contra2\D:\reg\Player2.reg"
    foreach ($server in $servers)
    {
        #$Session = New-PSSession -computername $server -credential $MyCredential
        $newfile = "\\$server\c$\Utils\"
        New-Item -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue -ItemType directory -Path \\$server\C$\Utils\
        Copy-Item $HostedRegFile -Destination $newfile 
        Invoke-Command -computername $server -ScriptBlock {
            Start-Process -filepath "C:\windows\regedit.exe" -argumentlist "/s C:\Utils\Player2.reg"
             }
    }

What am I doing wrong? Is there a better way (there always is)?

I am attempting to add a group of users to a failover cluster in windows 2012r2 I need to add the nodes as administrator to each other. I have put them into their own OU. However I was hoping to script this per powershell and a csv import. Ideas?

My google fu has not gotten me anywhere.

Example.

Import-Csv "C:\Users\me\Desktop\users.csv" | Where-Object {$_.Name} |`
 ForEach-Object {`
New-ADUser `
-Name $_."Name" `
-GivenName $_."GivenName" `
-Surname $_."Surname" `
-Description $_."Department" `
-SamAccountName $_."Logon_Username" `
-UserPrincipalName $_."UPN" `
-DisplayName $_."Display_Name" `
-AccountPassword (ConvertTo-SecureString -AsPlainText "P@ssw0rd1!" -Force) `
-Path "OU=Users,OU=Head Office,OU=International,DC=company,DC=com" `
-ChangePasswordAtLogon $true `
-Enabled $true | Enable-ADAccount | `
Add-ADGroupMember "QA_Users" $_."Logon_Username";
}

This is what I use currently.

background: Have a in house app that does heavy video encoding. The service fails from time to time as you can imagine. I have a windows task that will restart the service every 4 hours. However when the task runs; the application service (heavy video encoding app) being restarted fails. Thus giving an error and a manual start becomes required. On second try the service starts like it should until it fails again.

Question: I would like to find a way to add more resources (memory,CPU) on start up to allow the service to start correctly without going back to the developers and getting a rewrite. Is there a way to test this in case I have to take it to the developers and prove my point?

Been fighting a expired cert issue for the past few days. I am updating a cisco ace load balancer with an updated cert. However every time I attempt to validate the cert it is not valid or does not match. Steps I have used:

• Log into web server with valid cert installed Go to IIS Manager
• Create Certificate request in server certificates Edit correct information for company location etc. RSA and 2048 and save as a cert.csr
• Once *.csr is created
• open in notepad to get server request info.
• Go to: microsoft web certsvr address to create AD cert.
• Request new cert.
• Advanced and add the info copied from notepad into the appropriate field.
• click next and download the cert.cer
• Install the cert.cer into the cert store (personal)
• Open MMC on the same server and move the cert from personal to trusted root. (shows the key and cert as valid.)

• Edit the newly created cert.cer file with: Openssl openssl x509 -inform der -in certs\cert.cer -out certs\certs.cer.pem

• Export the PFX from the trusted root store. Create cert.pfx placed in the same folder that cert.cer and cert.cer.pem is located.

• get the certificate only and not the private key from a PFX file.

• Run the following command to export the private key: openssl pkcs12 -in certs\cert.pfx -nocerts -out certs\cert.key.pem -nodes

• Run the following command to remove the passphrase from the private key: openssl rsa -in certs\cert.key.pem -out certs\cert.server.key

  *Just for fun I also do the following to allow for compatibility: // Convert without requiring a password for the private key and include the private key in the cert. openssl pkcs12 -in Certs\cert.pfx -out certs\certs_nokey.pem -nodes

Any help or suggestions would be deeply appreciated.

UPDATE the CA is Microsoft certificate services. This would be a DHCP server giving out certs for the connecting servers. Affectionately (CertServ CA) UPDATE* This actually worked with the cisco load balancer as well as the Servers under it. Thanks.

I am looking to write a batch or vbs script to gather all users (local to the server. ie. administrators or a local account(not ad users)) on a collection of servers inside my network.

I assume I could do this by subnet. Could even put the server names into a csv text file for the script to read from and report back to. Lots to ask. I would use net user however I run into local access only.

Ideas? Or too many security walls to work?

Update: I do have access to these servers. It is mostly a security check to make sure that no other admin has changed the template. Powershell would be fine as well.

I know it can be done. Just been a while...

Scoured the internet for at least 10 minutes.

Have a bunch of laptops that are logging in when outside the "work" network.

I have been getting the question: I have an SSD and tons of ram why does it take 5 minutes to log in at home or outside the internal network?

My best answer is the login is going out looking for the AD server to pull gpupdates and login scripts for mapping and etc. And that is waiting on a time out.

So my question is: Is there a way to disable the lag of logging in due to time out of the mapping script?

Hoping to have a switch that could do a quick look up based on network location (home, Work, Public) and map accordingly.

Using Ubuntu 12.10 server. icinga with idoutils and icinga-web. Have ability to see hosts if I add them in the localhost_icinga.cfg

however from my understanding you can create a host.cfg based on systems. example: windows.cfg to monitor all windows machines via NSclient++ (similar to Nagios)

Everytime I create a new host.cfg icinga either gives me a duplicate error or it does not like the define host line. Example: (localhost_icinga.cfg working)

define host{ use generic-host host_name mikedoppdesk alias mikedoppdesk address 192.168.0.56 } However if I create a windows.cfg Example: define host{ use windows host_name mikedoppdesk alias mikedoppdesk address 192.168.0.56 }

and use: /usr/sbin/icinga -v /etc/icinga/icinga.cfg

output error line 1 windows.cfg

I have been chasing the icinga web docs trying to get a straight answer. I know I am missing something critical but cannot find rhyme or reason. Please educate or prove me dumb. Thanks in advance

I have been researching a way to add the new Microsoft offline security scanner to the bootloader on windows 7. Allow security scanner to be used when a machine is possibly infected. Visual BCD may do it. I was wondering if anyone has accomplished this as yet?

_{(source: askvg.com)}

Have a bat that calls a single exe for say 5-10 functions. Is there a way to make the executable run in multiple processes from a bat or cmd? for example:

  start cmd /k 
   cd Program files\Prog\Happy
   happy.exe optimize 113 /nointerupt >NuL &
   happy.exe optimize 114 /nointerupt >NuL &
   happy.exe optimize 115 /nointerupt >NuL &
   happy.exe optimize 116 /nointerupt >NuL &

I would rather not use multiple bat files called from one bat file. Perhaps create a separate PID for each exe....?

Ideas?

I am using a batch file to launch two different applications at the same time in different command line windows. Here is what I have:

start cmd /k
cd Windows\System32\ 
diskpart.exe >NUL & 
diskperf.exe >NUL &  

Repeat for every app you want to run.

I run this and it opens a new command prompt running both applications one after the other. However the other window opens and is waiting for a command.

Any ideas on putting the 2nd and following commands go into the separate command prompts per & statement.

So I have Windows 2003 with IIS6 Hosting an MVC web app that requires domain authentication. Any Good Ideas on how to do this. The errors I get is 400, 401 or service unavailable. I have followed the guides on setting up MVC Isapi however in doing wireshark monitoring I see that the domain responds but the local server denies the authentication. I have gone by this technet article. http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/WindowsServer2003/Library/IIS/1f708fa2-54ab-4da0-a5eb-d6a6c453c939.mspx?mfr=true However this does not work. Help.

Have a Windows SBS2003 server and want to get out from under the SBS setup. Any best scenarios for moving to Windows Server 2008R2? I know I will lose the domain and exchange features any other things I will lose?

Want to install Sharepoint server 2007 sp2 on Windows 2008r2 with only local users and NO Active Directory. Is this possible?

I have been using IIS7.5 Since its release. I am also using commerce server 2007sp2. Due to Commerce Servers Need for memory and processor I have the app pool the website is assigned to recycling at midnight every night. My Question is what is the best time table to recycle heavy web app pools? I am looking to keep speed and not bump potential customers while recycling multiple times a day if possible. Another issue is that every few days the same app pool will hang and I have to force a reset of IIS to get it working again.